To save itself, the GOP must impeach Donald Trump

For the sake of American democracy, the rule of law and (ultimately) the Republican Party, President Donald Trump must be impeached.

Let’s be clear about a couple of things. America, for good or for ill, remains the leading cultural and political influence in the world. As the Republic goes, so goes a significant chunk of the world — economically, politically and culturally.

And whether you cite Trump’s decision to pardon the minority-persecuting former sheriff Joe Arpaio, the presence of bonafide Nazis in his White House, his appalling response to the tragic events in Charlottesville, the accelerating pace of the probe into his campaign’s association with Russian oligarchs and despots, his chronic disdain for the rule of law, his clear lack of regard for women or people or colour, his efforts to take health care coverage away from some twenty million Americans, his family’s seemingly ceaseless efforts to cash in on the presidency or Christ knows what else … let’s just agree Trump is either done now, or will be sometime soon.

If you don’t agree, this column is not for you. (Also, please turn off Fox News and go talk to some people who don’t breathe with their mouths open.)

Given all these factors, there are basically three options. I’m not including here the possibility of Trump resigning. Given the president’s personality, his narcissism and obsession with his public image, the prospect of him stepping down seems incredibly unlikely. (Having said that, if Trump or members of his family face a likely prospect of indictment, one could not discount the possibility of Trump pardoning himself and others and then resigning from office — all the while blaming the #FakeNews media and Hillary Clinton. This scenario would share all the problems identified below.)

Option one: Republicans and Democrats allow him to serve out his term. This would require both parties in Congress to adopt meaningful strategies to cope with the fallout during the 2018 mid-term season.

For the Democrats, the challenge would be to use Trump as the catalyst to retake a majority in the House. The level of pro-Republican gerrymandering in U.S. congressional districts and the power of incumbency would make that a challenge, to say the least.

On gerrymandering alone, the task is immensely difficult. Texas, for example, has lost a slew of court cases in recent months relating to politically-driven redistricting of congressional boundaries — its gerrymandered State House map, voter ID laws and so on. These laws exist for one reason and one reason only: to prevent minority communities (usually African Americans but increasingly Latinos as well) from exercising their right to vote. But that’s not stopping state legislators from trying again and again. Keep in mind that in the U.S. it’s state governments which set the rules for voting and decide who’s won.

For the Republicans, the challenge could be catastrophic. With the president’s approval ratings dipping into the low 30s and continuing to fall, there will be no coattails for Republicans to ride. If things continue with this president in the same direction they’ve been heading since January (and barring some sort of Machiavellian Wag the Dog moment which this administration certainly seems incapable of organizing), one has to assume Trump is a one-term president.

For the health of the Republic and the Republican Party, Trump needs to be impeached, charged and, presumably, convicted of something — maybe several somethings.

So Republicans facing a re-election struggle in 2018 (not to mention 2020) will have to engage in some practical calculus on what their support for Trump may cost them personally. Hopefully they’ll spare a thought for the deeper problem: what Trump means for their party going forward.

If Trump continues on his current trajectory – especially when it comes to race relations – then the Grand Old Party will end up committing public suicide. As courts move to reverse the gerrymandering of congressional districts and demographics continue to work against the angry-old-white-guy vote, a GOP seen as defending only that constituency to the exclusion of all others will very soon find itself reduced to irrelevance.

That brings us back to the other two options: Exercise the 25th Amendment and remove the president from office on the basis he is unfit to serve … or impeach him.

The 25th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was adopted in 1967 in the wake of two somewhat unclear transitions from vice president to president. Harry Truman became president upon the death of Franklin Roosevelt in 1945, while Lyndon Johnson was elevated after the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963. In both cases, the original wording of Article II of the Constitution was deemed vague on the question of whether the incoming replacement became president, acting-president or something else upon the death, resignation or removal of his predecessor.

The 25th Amendment also provides for a process by which a sitting president can be removed from office. While there is some debate about the exact pre-conditions necessary (it has never been used), it’s clear that a majority of the cabinet – including the vice president – can remove the president from office both temporarily and (eventually) permanently.

In many ways, this seems like an ideal solution. If Trump is the problem, just get rid of the problem. Already, senior officials up to and including Secretary of State Rex Tillerson have made it clear recently that Trump speaks for Trump and no one else — especially when it comes to Charlottesville, racism and anti-Semitism. One or two more serious eruptions of unacceptable behaviour from Trump and majority cabinet support for ending his presidency may exist.

But for both the Republic and the Republicans, simply removing Trump will not solve anything. At best, the message sent by exercising the 25th Amendment would be that there is a point beyond which even the president can become an inconvenience to his Party — something to be cut out, rather than cured. A symptom, not the disease.

No, for the health of the Republic and the Republican Party, Trump needs to be impeached, charged and, presumably, convicted of something — maybe several somethings. (Certainly seems like Robert Mueller is developing an à la carte menu of alternatives.)

The process for an impeachment is laid out in Article I of the U.S. Constitution. The House of Representatives must vote (by two thirds) to impeach any senior officer of the executive (including the president). The charges are then handed over to the Senate for trial — a two-step process.

Two former presidents have been successfully impeached by the House: Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998. Charges against Richard Nixon were referred to the House for a vote but that vote was forestalled by Nixon’s resignation from office. No president has ever been convicted at trial by the Senate.

Only by standing up and voting to impeach the man they rallied behind so recently — and by voting to convict him of a crime — can Republicans offer the United States and their party the catharsis they so desperately need. Only by impeaching Trump can Republicans assure Americans that their country has not failed — that no one is above the law and the American system of government is alive and well, and that the GOP is an active part of that system.

Of all his many sins, it is Trump’s complete and utter disregard for government institutions and the rule of law that poses the clearest danger to the world’s most powerful democracy. Everything else has flowed from that.

If Democrats want to do what’s right for the Republic, if Republicans truly want to cleanse themselves of the crime of pandering to the worst, most corrupt elements of American life, nothing less than the impeachment and trial of Donald Trump will suffice.

The views, opinions and positions expressed by all iPolitics columnists and contributors are the author’s alone. They do not inherently or expressly reflect the views, opinions and/or positions of iPolitics.

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The views, opinions and positions expressed by all iPolitics columnists and contributors are the author’s alone. They do not inherently or expressly reflect the views, opinions and/or positions of iPolitics.